The Lady Panthers returned to the mats on Saturday for the first competition of the year in what was an exciting display of talent. The Mill placed second in both the varsity and junior varsity competitions. The Lady Panthers and head coach Heather McNally start the year looking to improve with many new faces alongside talented returning cheerleaders.

“We had taken things down a notch and made them a little less complicated and now we’re going to up the ante again,” McNally said. “We have some very very talented girls, so I was very proud of them. The first competition is always hard, so they did a really good job and I know they’re going to do a whole lot better next weekend.”

The varsity Panthers fell only to Carrollton who took the title of state champs this past year while JV finished behind only North Paulding. While many challenges face the girls this season, coach McNally stated that she would like to improve running tumbling and clean up the routine looking forward.

“It was a good opportunity for them to get their nerves out and understand what it’s gonna be like, especially for the new girls,” McNally said. “Now they’ll know what to expect for upcoming competitions.”

With the first competition complete, the Lady Panthers will up the intensity at practice as they head to Whitewater High School this weekend. Coach McNally looks to push the girls at practice this week in hopes of getting a better result this Saturday.

The next competition takes place at 10 a.m. on Sept. 22. The Lady Panthers host their own competition the following weekend.